Christ. For
example; "That which befalleth the sons of men, befalleth beasts; as the
one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath, so that a
man hath no preeminence above a beast: all go to one place; all are of
the dust, and turn to dust again. Wherefore I perceive that there is
nothing better, than that a man should rejoice in his works." And again,
"The living know that they shall die; but the dead know not any thing;
their love, and their hatred, and their envy are perished; neither have
they any more a reward." Add to this, "Wherefore I praise the dead which
are already dead, more than the living which are yet alive: yea, better
is he than both they, which hath not yet been." There can therefore be
no just exception taken against our allowing ourselves freely to canvas
the maxim cited at the head of this Essay.

It certainly contains a sufficient quantity of unquestionable truth,
to induce us to regard it as springing from profound observation, and
comprehensive views of what is acted "under the sun."

A wise man would look at the labours of his own species, in much the
same spirit as he would view an ant-hill through a microscope. He would
see them tugging a grain of corn up a declivity; he would see the tracks
that are made by those who go, and who return; their incessant activity;
and would find one day the copy of that which went before; and their
labours ending in nothing: I mean, in nothing that shall carry forward
the improvement of the head and the heart, either in the individual or
society, or that shall add to the conveniences of life, or the better
providing for the welfare of communities of men. He would smile at their
earnestness and zeal, all spent in supplying the necessaries of the day,
or, at most, providing for the revolution of the seasons, or for that
ephemeral thing we call the life of man.

Few things can appear more singular, when duly analysed, than that
articulated air, which we denominate speech. It is not to be wondered at
that we are proud of the prerogative, which so eminently distinguishes
us from the rest of the animal creation. The dog, the cat, the horse,
the bear, the lion, all of them have voice. But we may almost consider
this as their reproach. They can utter for the greater part but one
monotonous, eternal sound.

The lips, the teeth, the palate, the throat, which in man are
instruments of modifying the voice in such endless variety, are in this
respect giv